Nezekan's Judgement
by seinka
Summary: Nezekan is troubled. With the sudden change of the Lady of Life he has to care about too many things at once. If he does even slight mistake, Elysea might fall into a civil war. The spies of Asmodae are everywhere. And as if it wasn't enough, a person appears to remind him that even he, the Lord of Justice, wasn't always obedient of Aion's laws. Third of The Godstone Tales.
1. Chapter 01

_**~ Several hundreds years ago / few months before the Cataclysm ~**_

"He's suffering, we can't hold him locked inside anymore, he needs to meet other people," a woman with black hair and black eyes said.

"But if we do that, others will know," a ginger-haired man objected. "And what's worse, Aion himself will know. We broke his law."

"Then we have to beg him for forgivness," she decided. "If Aion will want to punish someone, let him punish us. But not _him_. He's innocent."

"I don't care if anything happens to me, but I couldn't stand losing you," he embraced her. "I love you."

"I love you too," she looked into his luminously blue eyes. "But we broke the law. We have to face justice. Please, come with me to Aion. We have to get mercy for our son. If we don't, we will lose him."

"You're right," he kissed her. "He can't stay there. I love you both. Let's go."

Before they could spread their wings and fly back to the Tower of Eternity, they heard thunder from the hidden playground they built for their son. Immediately they turned and flew there at their highest speed. They were late. The aether barrier was shattered and only ruins remained from what was once a great structure.

"No," she breathed out in horror and started to turn every stone, searching for her son. After few hours they gave up. The boy was nowhere to be found, his aether trail disappeared. She fell to her knees and tears ran down from her eyes. "No! Kahrun!"

After her scream's echoes vanished and rain drops started falling, her heart became stone and she disappeared into shadows.

~ x ~

_**~ Eighteen years ago ~**_

"It's always an honor to meet one of the Seraphim lords in person," Kahrun descended from his throne to greet a man clad in heavy plate armor and smiled. "What is the occasion of your visit, lord Nezekan?"

"I wanted to meet the leader of our new allies in person," the Lord of Justice smiled too. "Thank you for saving the lives of our people."

"I am sorry, I wasn't there earlier."

"You were in time, we delivered a severe blow to Tiamat and Veille is recovering well. We've lost good soldiers there, it's sad, but we're at war. And that's one of the reasons I came here. I want to discuss the unusual terms of our alliance you sent us."

"Sure, come to my office," Kahrun becked him and led him to a room he used for meetings, dealings with paperwork and other duties of leader. "Wine?"

"Thank you," Nezekan nodded and got a goblet full of dark red liquid. It smelled good. "You seem very insistent on the peace with the Asmodians here in Sarpan."

"Yes. I'm not going to make a compromise about this condition."

"And Asmodians agreed?"

"They are not far from agreement. But the final meeting regarding this decision will be held for both, Elyos and Asmodians so you can ask their representative directly."

"Who will that be?"

"I don't know," Kahrun folded his arms on his chest. "I would prefer lord Azphel and lady Ariel, but I won't reject any Empyrean lord. So far I've been dealing with lord Marchutan, as he's in charge of Asmodian forces in Balaurea. In fact, I was expecting to meet lord Kaisinel today. What happened?"

"I told you, I wanted to meet you in person," Nezekan replied seriously. "You've grown into a strong, good leader, Kahrun. And even if I don't agree with all your opinions, I'm proud of you."

"Thank you, father," Kahrun said after a moment of silence. "That means a lot to me. I hope you can forgive me one day."

"There's nothing to forgive you. You did nothing wrong. I should have raised you and taught you instead of giving you meaningless toys. The one I will never forgive is myself."

"And mother?"

Nezekan clenched his fist and then relaxed it.

"We haven't really talked to each other since you left. When she saw the ruins, it broke her heart. And then the Cataclysm happened," he sighed. "I think she feels the same guilt as I do, even though she'll never admit it. And I bet she was already here to see you."

"She wasn't here."

"She's master spy and she cares about you. I know her. She's been here, watching you without being seen. She's happy to see you alive and is also proud of you. She's not as heartless as she tries to pretend."

"You speak so nicely of her," Kahrun smiled. "Almost as if you still loved her."

"I do."

"I'm glad to hear that. You have one more reason for the peace with the Asmodians."

"No," Nezekan frowned. "I can't let my feelings and my personal affairs to interfere with the interests of Elysea."

"Maybe they are not that different," Kahrun objected. "But that's up to you to decide."

Someone knocked on the door and after being allowed the reian messenger entered. He gave his leader a sealed scroll and with bows and apologies he left.

"Can we continue this conversation tomorrow?" Kahrun asked after he read the scroll. "There's something I have to take care of urgently. I'll have a room ready for you and you can join me for a dinner."

"I'll gladly accept."

~ x ~

Nezekan sat on the edge of his bed. The dinner ended a long while ago, but he still couldn't sleep. His son was alive. That was one of the two things he could think about. The other was...

"Why did you say that?" a woman's voice quietly echoed his room.

"Why did I say what?" he asked and looked at the window. She was there, dressed in tight black leathers, her hair of the same color was bound into a ponytail and her onyx eyes were watching him closely.

"That... Why did you tell _that_ to Kahrun?" she asked again and her voice was shaking slightly. "You didn't have to lie to him, he's already grown up, he would understand..."

"All I said to him was true. And I would say that even if I knew you were there too," he replied and got up from the bed.

"No, you're lying," she refused his answer. "You can't appear after all these centuries of leaving me alone and tell our son that you... you..."

"I love you."

"I was waiting for you," she wanted to say bitterly, but her voice betrayed her. "But you never came. After the Cataclysm, I thought you died. And when I finally saw you alive in Reshanta and looked into your eyes, I... I realized you will never come."

"I'm sorry it ended like this. After you disappeared from the ruins, I thought you never want to see me again, I failed to protect our son. And I didn't have enough courage to talk to you. I know I will never deserve forgivness, but I want to tell you this," he came closer to her and caught her shoulders. "I still love you, Triniel. I've never stopped," he said seriously and looked into her eyes.

She stood there speachless. Upon discovery their son is still alive and well the stone covering her heart cracked and she was overwhelmed with feelings she thought she'd forgotten a long time ago.

"I love you too, Nezekan," she finally managed to say and tears filled her eyes. "I love you too."

He wiped her tears gently and kissed her.

~ x ~

_**~ Present day ~**_

Nezekan knocked on the door and waited for reply. As he expected, none came. He sighed, opened the door and entered the room. He saw the same scenery as before. The curtains were drawn and a lone woman was siting on her bed and holding something that looked like a green dress.

"I had your things to be moved here," he said without greeting. He knew she wouldn't respond to that.

"Yes. I know," she replied silently. "Thank you, l... Nezekan."

"How are you feeling?" he asked with concern. It's been five days since she got the Power of Life and she still wasn't able do anything but being closed in her room and mourning.

"I... miss him."

Nezekan twitched. This was a change. Until now she's been talking only about Yustiel, never mentioned her memories or anyone from Asmodae. He didn't exactly _hate_ the Asmodians, there was no place for hatred in justice, but in his eyes they were the ones who betrayed lady Ariel and he couldn't stand them. Especially one certain Shedim lord.

"I remember wearing this dress when lady Yustiel found me," she continued. "It was... a present from him."

The Lord of Justice resisted the urge to take the dress from her and tear it apart.

"I thought he had forgotten about me and then he sent me this. And in the end it was me who forgot about him," her voice itself was telling him she was grieving.

"Stop this," he raised his voice. No matter how deep her grief was, he didn't want to listen anything about _that _one. "Don't you remember your oath?"

"I do..." she sighed and looked at him. "I'm not going to find him, Nezekan. It's just... I remember being with him and then I woke up in Eltnen. I wish I knew what happened in between. Is he looking for me? Or does he think I'm dead? Or..."

"This might help," he gave her an envelope with her name written on it. "Yustiel wrote this for you."

"Do you know what's inside?"

"I didn't open it. But she told me some facts about you, so I can guess what could be there."

"Thank you," she hesitantly took the envelope.

"Your house will be ready for you by the end of the week. Until then, you can stay here, but you should pull yourself together. Soon," he continued. After she became Lady of Life, the other lords insisted she had to live in a building that matched her status. Temporarily she was moved into a guest room in Nezekan's house and servants were preparing the house of lady Yustiel for its new owner.

"I don't want it. Can't I have my studio in Oriel?"

"No. You're going to have a new life. It's a life full of duties and seldom you can do what you want. Get used to it," he was slowly losing his patience.

"Even if I do, your people will never accept me."

"They are your people too."

"I can't do this," she sobbed. "I... I'm scared. What if I fail?"

"Everyone makes mistakes."

"But..."

"I don't remember you being such a coward in the Reshanta back then," he couldn't even believe the one in front of him is the same person. Yes, she had the same face, but this frightened girl was someone completely different than the determined daeva defending a fallen Shedim lord.

"You..." she looked at him in surprise. "You remember me?"

"If Yustiel hadn't told me about you, I wouldn't put it together. But it's hard to forget someone who stands against two Empyrean lords at once. Even though I thought you died from Vaizel's poison."

"I _should_ have died," she saddened again. "If I did, nothing of this would..."

"If you wish, I can make that happen," he affirmed.

For a moment she sat there silent and motionless. Then she slowly shook her head.

"It's too late. _He_ is hurt, lady Yustiel is dead and I am alive. It's..."

"Precisely. You are alive. So stop being sorry for yourself and _do something_. Yustiel believed in you, that's why she entrusted you her will. And you made an oath to be faithful to Elysea. By hiding you here in this dark room and crying you're not adhereing to neither of those. Get yourself together," he said irritatedly. Then he took a breath to calm down and added a bit gently: "Read that letter. It might help you."

He turned and went to the door.

"Wait..." she hesitantly stopped him. "Who... knows about me?"

"I do."

"Will you... tell someone?"

"No. Unless you decide to betray us."

"Thank you, Nezekan. I will..." she had to force herself to say these words. "I will try to... to be worthy of lady Yustiel's trust."

He nodded and left the room. When the door closed, he sighed and replayed their dialogue in his mind. He didn't like being a baby-sitter for a Lady of Life, but there was no other option. She needed to be guided and he was the only one who could do that. As the guidance of this sort required some knowledge about her past, Kaisinel or Vaizel in his current role never ended well. If Kaisinel knew she used to be an Asmodian, he would kill her, Lady or not. And Vaizel would only blackmail her to tell everyone her secret unless she goes with him to bed. And although Nezekan bore no love for Asmodians as a whole, he could judge characters of individuals pretty fairly. And she was neither bad nor stupid. In time, if she was determined she could replace Yustiel almost fully. But first she had to deal with herself. And as he found out in the last days, this was the biggest problem.

~ x ~

"I want that information," Triniel said coldly to her underling. "I don't care how many spies you have to send, but I want to know who the hell she is and how did she became a Lady of Life."

"Lady Yustiel gave her all of her power, my lady," the man replied without even thinking about it.

"Why?" Triniel's eyes flared red, but her voice was still colder than winter in Beluslan. The higher ranked spies knew the Ladies of Life and Death were sisters. Sometimes they wondered if it influenced their leader's actions, but lady Yustiel never participated in the war and there wasn't any communication between them. Sooner or later everyone came to a conclusion that relationship is no danger for Asmodae. But after learning of her sister's death, lady Triniel became... emotionally unstable. It wasn't an eye-catching change, but those who knew, have noticed. And they weren't happy about that.

"I will find out, my lady," the senior spy bowed deeply.

"You have two weeks to gather every possible information about her."

"Yes, my lady."

"But they will expect it. They will strenghten the defenses around her," she commented her thoughts. "That means they will not be as vigilant in other places. Send also someone to the Inggison outpost. Something is amiss there."

"As you wish, my lady."

~ x ~

_Dear May,_

_I am sorry for placing such a burden upon you and for leaving you alone with so many questions unanswered. I am writing this letter two days before the council. Your action of freeing the Asmodian prisoner was the last thing I needed to know about you and your character. Now I am truly convinced that you are the right person for being a Lady of Life. You proved you have a compassion, which is the quality this title needs the most._

_Please, do not blame yourself for what has happened. _

_I do not know if your memories will return, so I shall write you what I know. It was the truth that I found you in Eltnen and saved your life. But it is only part of the truth. On that day I witnessed true miracle to happen. Zikel, the Shedim lord of Destruction, came to my camp and asked me for help. Even before the Cataclysm he never _asked_ for anything. He only ordered people around him. So when he asked, I followed him. He led me to you and told me that even the best healers of Asmodae cannot help you. He was so worried about you, because he loved you. Unfortunately, his love was the cause of your illness. His aether was too strong for your body to sustain it. And because he loved you, he was subconsciously giving himself to you. There was no other way to save your life than giving you my essence. I sent Zikel away and transferred it. But I made a mistake. Your own aether was already too weak any with my essence and the Power of Life your body changed. You were an Asmodian and your name was Alia. I still do not know why your memories vanished, but when I found out, I was scared. Scared of what would happen if you knew, if you would go back to Asmodae or remain here. So I gave you a new name so you could begin a new life as a daeva of Elysea. I sent Zikel a note telling him I failed, letting him believe you died._

_But as you are a Lady now, you deserve to know the truth. This is why you are much more important than I am. Your bond with Zikel is much stronger than mine with my sister. You are our greatest hope for peace between Elysea and Asmodae._

_I am not seeking forgivness for what I have done. But I hope you will understand._

_Aion watch over you._

_Yustiel_

~ x ~

The spy commander wasn't in his best mood, the orders from lady Triniel appeared to be quite impossible to carry out. He simply didn't have enough good spies he could sent to both, Elysea and Inggison, without calling back those who were in the middle of important long term missions. He already assigned everyone capable and available to the Lady of Life cause, but he lacked spies for Inggison. He knew this time he would also have to participate in terrain. And he didn't like it. Not because of his abilities, he was good, lady Triniel would never promote him if he wasn't one of the best. But no matter how good he might be, there was always risk of being captured and interrogated. And he possessed knowledge of half of Asmodae's spies. That meant he could go only as a long-distance observer. And he needed someone, anyone, to go to the outpost.

He looked at the folders of his underlings who were still available. All of them were humans. In his profession, to be human was mostly a disadvantage, but he knew humans were useful. They didn't live the long lives of daevas and they didn't grow bored, there was less danger they will betray. And because of their short lives they didn't encounter too much secrets so if the enemy captured and interrogated them, they had almost nothing to tell. And of course there was their mortality. They couldn't be tortured by being killed and resurrected over and over again. Their first death was also their final.

One of the folders attracted his attention. It belonged to a young woman, some could also say a girl. Seventeen years old, orphan and was trained as spy since her six years. In her civilian life she worked as a tailor's apprentice, because of it she could go to various places legally and her reports had very high standards. Her attention to details and observation skills were at a level of a high ranked spy. If she ascended and gained some experience, she had a potential to become really good.

Was it worthy to send her there with the risk of her being killed? According to lady Triniel's orders it had to be.

~ x ~

May hypnotized the paper in her hands. She's read it twice already and still could not grasp all of its meanings. Zikel loved her so much he sought help from his greatest enemy. And she was too weak to accept his love. And lady Yustiel sacrificed all of her power and her life for a person she'd never seen before for reasons only she knew. May cried. Again. Tears were flowing from her eyes and she couldn't stop them. Rationally she understood why lady Yustiel did it, but her emotions refused to admit it. If she really got a life to live, why it was so hard?

"I've brought a lunch for you, my lady," a young servant girl said from the door. May twitched her head and looked at her in surprise. It took her few seconds to realize who just came to her room. And then as if some switch in her mind changed over.

"Thank you," May forced herself to smile. "Please, put it there," she gestured to a small table.

"Is something wrong, my lady?" the girl didn't expect the new Lady of Life to react. She was used to her blank expression and simple nods without even looking at her. This change could mean the Lady was displeased with her service. And also the tears were a very good sign of something being out of order.

"No, nothing is wrong," May said after a moment of hesitation. "Tell me your name, please."

"Mirri, my lady."

"Mirri... can I... can I have a bath?"

"Yes! Of course, my lady! I'll let you know once it's ready!" the servant gabbled out, apparently she was happy about such a common request.

"Thank you."

The girl bowed and left the room at incredible speed. Only at that time May realized she's hungry. She faintly remembered she'd eaten something over the last days, but couldn't recall what was it. She got up, threw the letter to the fireplace and for the first time since lady Yustiel's death she ate her meal fully conscious and aware of what she's eating.

~ x ~

This was one of the days she really hated. Master Zyakia was displeased with everything, the floor was not swept well enough, the twine was too tangled, the textile was creased, the apprentices were noisy. Nothing was good today. That means she had to stay late and after all others left tidy up all the work room and the shop. Then she had to put every material and semi-product to order in their shelves and almost sort them by structure and colors. Being the only human apprentice had many disadvantages. But she didn't complain. Even though she was the last person here in the tailor's shop in Pandaemonium, compared to her life in the Morheim orphanage it was much better. For the last three years she even got her own studio in Pernon. The rent and expenses for the teleporter took most of her wages, but the contributions from her so called part-time job made up for it, so she was content. Not happy, she wanted to be more than just tailor's apprentice, but she knew she was still young even for a human and waited patiently for her opportunity to come.

She locked the shop and walked though streets of Pandaemonium. Even after the close of business they were still full. Nobles and commoners, daevas and humans, soldiers and civilians. Everyone who meant something visited the capital of Asmodae as often as they could. And those who _wanted_ to mean something usually came into the city and only those lucky ones ever returned back to their villages and fortresses. She liked watching the people, their faces so often in contrast with their clothes. She learnt to tell apart various types of them just from their expressions, poises, gestures and movements. And she liked the smell of the aether when she got close to some powerful daeva. When walking through the Pandaemonium, she saw everyone, but no one saw her. She couldn't hide in the shadows like assassins could, but she mastered the art of acting like she belonged to almost every place and thus being noteless. She called it just a different kind of invisibility.

She reached the teleporter, paid him the little coin she had prepared and within several minutes she entered her studio. And stopped at the doorstep. There was a faint scent that didn't belong into her room. She scanned the surroundings and her gaze fell upon an envelope lying on her pillow. To any other person it would look like a love-letter, but she knew better than that. She closed the door, checked no one is watching her and carefully read the writing. Then she pinched her cheek and read it again. The text was still the same, so she lifted her pillow and found a purse with enough kinah for travel to Gelkmaros and back and other expenses.

_Master Zyakia will be really displeased tomorrow_, was her first thought after she accepted the fact she's been just sent to a scouting mission into Inggison.


	2. Chapter 02

The new house was clean, neat and well sunlit. The Elysean sun gave May trouble no more, but still she preferred curtains drawn. Apart from shielding the light they provided also privacy, as a lot of people wanted to know who is their new Lady of Life and used any means to find out. Nezekan had to put more guards to both entrances to her house.

The past few days were exhausting. She had to undertake formal visits to the commanders in all parts of Elysea, smile and nod to everyone she met, even though she saw a lot of the people resenting her. Lady Yustiel was loved by everyone and May knew she was very bad replacement for her. She still had to visit Inggison and Sarpan, but after Nezekan saw what toll these formalities took on her, he decided to leave it for later.

The time she didn't spent on meeting with people or sleeping she used for studying. Nezekan brought her several books about Elysea's geography, nature, history and politics and she was reading them thoroughly so she could pretend to be Elyos from the day of her birth. When she got tired from being locked inside the four walls, she took one of the books, put on a cape and walked though the city, until she found some quiet corner without people where she could read. Nezekan still didn't allow her to act on her own and perform her duties as the Lady of Life and besides reading she had nothing to do. And she grew restless. She knew she should be doing something, but she had no idea what.

"Did you hear what happened in Heiron?" she heard a bored voice of some Sanctum noblewoman. She was siting on a bank under a cherry tree and her clothes were plain, so they didn't even noticed her.

"Did they wipe out the Lepharists as they did in Eltnen?" the other woman asked without any interest.

"Oh, no, those rebels are well hidden there, as I have heard. I'm talking about the village, they say there is some contagion," she puckered her nose with distaste. "Do you think they will stop it in time before it gets here?"

"Oh, but they have to! It's all _her_ falut! If lady Yustiel was still here, she would already take care of it."

"I wonder what tricks _she_ used to get that power. Did you even hear about _her_ before? Could _she_ be a spy?"

"Oh, Aion, no! Lord Vaizel would surely find out, no?"

"Speaking about lord Vaizel..."

They walked away and May could not hear the rest of their conversation. But given the speed they changed their topics she didn't think she missed something more important than she already learnt. People hated her. And what was worse, there was some disease in Heiron and no one even told her! She could have already been there and trying to help! She waited until her head stopped spinning and returned to her house. There she found her work clothes, bag and first aid kit, took some supplies from the kitchen and headed for the Sanctum's teleporter.

"Are you going outside of Sanctum, my lady?" a templar tactfully stepped into her way. She stopped and looked at him. His blue-grey armor matched his dark blue eyes and his short hair was brown with tinge of red. He held a one-handed sword and a shield and his face was serious.

"I have an urgent business in Heiron," she replied.

"I'm sorry, my lady, but I can't allow you to go there."

"You can't allow _me_? Why?" she frowned.

"Orders from lord Nezekan, my lady," he swallowed nervously. "I was assigned as your guardian. Please, do not leave Sanctum until he returns."

"And that will be when?"

"In few days, I don't know how long he plans to stay in Sarpan, but it shouldn't take long."

"I can't wait that long," she refused and looked resolutely into his eyes. "Either force me to stay or follow me."

"I am your guardian, my lady. I will follow your orders and protect you with my life," he swore.

"You don't have to," she shook her head. "If you despise me, or don't trust me, or just if you don't want to risk your life because of me, you don't have to. If it's just because of orders..."

"Lord Nezekan trusts you, my lady. And so do I. It is an honour to protect you."

"Honour?"

"Can I speak freely, my lady?"

"Yes, please."

"I know some people don't like you. But I can't. I don't know you. I want to know what kind of person you really are before I decide to hate you or pledge my life and soul to you."

"Thank you," she smiled. "I'm happy at least someome is honest with me. Thank you, really, I mean it. Can you tell me your name?"

"Geralt, my lady," he bowed. "Friends and enemies call me Wolf."

"So, Wolf, how well do you know Heiron?"

~ x ~

When Chellia told her about leaving the shop, master Zyakia wasn't displeased. She was angry. She yelled at her apprentice, even threatened her, but the girl only bowed her head, apologised and said goodbye. She knew this journey would cost her job, but she wasn't prepared for feelings of sadness and emptiness, when she was boarding a ship to Gelkmaros. Maybe she can find new job and people there after she completes her mission. If she completes it. At the first moments she was happy to going there, but after thinking about preparations and possible escape plans, she camr to a conclusion that eiter she had done something very bad and this was her punishment, or someone was really desperate to send her.

She got off the ship and took a detailed look on the Gelkmaros fortress. It was built from huge blocks of solid greenish stone, Asmodian banners were hanging on most of the walls. Above the great stairs and court an aether generator was floating in mid-air as it almost seemed it should fall every moment. But most interesting were the people, so different from Pandaemonium. Soldiers and guards were well respected, not just considered as necessary part of the fortress. Nobles were there only in few numbers and even they obeyed when guards told them anything. Merchants had their shops hidden inside the thick, solid walls, not a single one had their goods in portable stand. Everyone was expecting attack or at least an alarm at every moment. Chellia knew that the fortress was attacked several times, either by the Balaur Dredgions or Elyos war groups, but fortunately it was always defended.

But she wasn't here to watch life in the fortress. She had a mission and a long journey awaited her. The air lines in Gelkmaros were not like the flight transporter in Asmodae, they only allowed the daevas to fly faster and without getting tired. But for ordinary human it was unusable. Without wings she had to walk her way to Silentera canyon and Inggison. She chose not to use the main Silentera gate where the Asmodian guards were patrolling, but instead to go though the narrow passage in Mitrakand. The Balaur were known to gather there from time to time, but if she can't avoid them, hoc could she infiltrate the Elyos base? And her mission was secret, the guards would have questions, the Balaur not.

It took her almost whole day to get through Antagor Battlefield and Spiritfall Forest, past near the Nunglark Ruins to tunnels leading to Viscum Swamp. Those marches were terrible place, especially for someone who spent her last seven years in Pandaemonium. Various stenches, crawly creatures and creepy sounds unnerved her and she was so relieved when she saw the huge stone stairs leading to Mitrakand. The Fortune smiled upon her, or as would lord Marchutan's followers say, the Destiny had plans with her. Either way she was able to sneak into the underground canyon without being noticed.

Apart from detailed study of map, her knowledge about Silentera consisted of 'no sky', 'leads to Inggison', 'swarmed with the Dragonbound' and 'created by giants'. Who those giants were she had no idea, so when she saw one of the Jotuns, she was stunned. This huge creature looked like it was carved out from stone, its legs resembled solid pillars and its steps were loud enough to outthunder everything short of explosion. And from what she could hear, this giant wasn't alone in this canyon. She didn't have to worry about making noise, her steps in soft leather boots had no chance to be heard in close distance of the Jotun. And they weren't much observant either. In only two hours she passed through Silentera and emerged from the stones in the Angrief Wastes, near Altar of Avarice.

_A convenient name for an Elyos fortress_, she thought and scanned her surroundings. Left of her were ruins, right the barrens and the fortress. The outpost she was supposed to scout lied right in front of her, but behind a deep natural trench enclosed with not so natural walls. There were only two ways to pass it. And both looked like a bridge full of Elyos guards. But she refused to give up. There _had to_ be another way in! Balaurea differed from Asmodae and Elysea in many things. But the most visible one was a regular changes of Elysean days and Asmodean nights. After an hour or so of waiting, the sun finally set and Chellia carefully stepped out of her hideout. The Elyos were half blind in the night, but she didn't want to rely on that. They knew darkness was their weakness, so they prepared themselves. She was certain there were many traps reacting on Asmodians. Therefore she avoided the guards and slowly advanced north alongside the canyon until she found a huge rocky figure in a shape of natural bridge. She took two steps on it and froze. Someone was behind her. A split second after she realized it, he caught her and she could feel something cold and sharp on her neck.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" the assassin's voice was amused.

~ x ~

"Have you seen mother lately? I'm trying to contact her, but without any success," Kahrun was pacing his office when Nezekan came in and looked worried.

"You called me from Elysea just to ask me that?" the Lord of Justice had heavy dark bags under his eyes and this was the last thing he expected when he read his son's urgent letter. He was tired and getting angry. "She's still an enemy. I haven't seen her since... eighteen years ago. But we have our spies there. I would know if something happened to her. I hoped it was something important when you called me here. With Yustiel gone, I can't..."

"This _is _important," Kahrun interrupted him. "I'm sorry, father, but I can't tell it anyone else. I have serious reason to believe she might not be alright."

"I thing she's still grieving. Yustiel was her sister."

"She was? I'm sorry, I had no idea. It might explain..." the Reian leader wrinkled his forehead in deep thinking.

"Explain what? I have to return to Elysea as soon as possible. But if she is in danger, I must know. Tell me, Kahrun, what's going on?"

"I had a dream six days ago," Kahrun looked at his father seriously. "I had dreams like that before. Not often and no one besides Garnon knows about them. But dreams like that will come true."

"What did you see?" Nezekan felt a sudden jab of fear.

"She's going to die. I don't know when or where, but soon she will be killed by Kaisinel's spell."

"What?! No, it's not possible," the Elyos leader refused to believe that. "Kaisinel would attempt to kill her on sight, yes, but she's strong, she's able to defend herself or retreat. No, you must be wrong."

"I'm sorry, but these dreams are never wrong," Kahrun shook his head. "They can be prevented, yes, but never wrong. That's why I'm trying to contact her, to warn her."

"Are you sure it was her?" Nezekan asked with the last straw of hope.

"I haven't see her face clearly," he admitted. "But the feeling of familiarity I had... it could be no other person."

"So you're sure?"

"Unfortunately yes."

"Damn!" the templar hit the wall angrily. "Fine then. I'm going to talk with Kaisinel."

"You... will?" Kahrun was apparently surprised.

"I can't tell him not to attack her, but maybe I can find out what's going on."

~ x ~

The senior spy was hidden in a small noteless cavern slightly under the top of the canyon wall. Equipped with his spyglass he could clearly see that failure. She might be good in a crowds of Pandaemonium, but in terrain she was useless. She couldn't even hide herself in the shadows! And that Elyos assassin was behind her for some time already, how could she not notice him! He cursed his decision to send her and counted to ten to calm himself down. It was time to change his location again, by capturing her the Elyos will be alerted and search everything around the base to find every Asmodian confident enough to get close.

~ x ~

"What exactly do you mean by saying that you can't take us there?" May asked the flight transporter.

"From general Perento's orders, the transporting device in Jeiaparan village was disabled," the woman replied. "It's not possible to set up a connection and transport anyone now."

"Thank you," May smiled and stepped aside to take a good look at the city.

"We can fly to Heiron Observatory and walk from there, my lady," Wolf suggested.

"Hm... yes, we can," she nodded. "But I want to speak with general Perento first."

"But you said you wanted to conceal your identity, I don't think general will..."

"This is more important. If he gave this order, he must know something. And I need information more reliable than just gossips."

"As you wish, my lady."

They walked though the city to the general's headquarters, but the guard in front of the building stopped them.

"What is your business here?" he asked sulkily.

"I require an audience with general Perento, it is urgent," May smiled politely.

"General is busy," the guard retorted. "Come again tomorrow during the public hours."

Public hours was time, usually held once a week, when leaders, high priests and some other important people of the cities sat in great hall and anyone could ask them or report anything. As not everyone was able to get an audience, this was the best compromise.

"Watch your tongue when you speak with the Lady of Life," Wolf snapped at him.

"Lady of Life? Do I look like an idiot to you? Lady of Life was here an hour ago, you think I won't remember? Get lost before I get you arrested," the soldier snorted.

"No..." May whispered in shock and felt as if she was struck by lightning. She stared at the guerd, her eyes wide open and couldn't find words to say.

"What?!" Wolf couldn't believe that. "Are you mad? An hour ago she was still in Sanctum! And..."

"Wolf," she stopped him. "Let's go."

"But... my lady..."

"We're not welcome here. Don't provoke him. We're leaving. Now," she turned on her heel and headed to the flight transporter.

"This is not an end," Wolf muttered to the guard and followed her.

They flew to Heiron Observatory. During the flight May managed to calm herself down and think about the guard's words. There was an imposter. Someone took the advantage of her face not being known to public, she's been in Heiron only once for a short formal visit and her hair style and clothes were both different.

"My lady, where are we going?" Wolf asked when they entered the Decayed Grove.

"To Jeiaparan."

"But... why? There is an imposter somewhere, we have to..."

"Yes, we have to find her and dispose of her, I know that," she continued her way angrily. "But arguing with general Perento would take too long. And the people of that village might not have that time. After we deal with that sickness, we will take care of _her_."

"As you wish, my lady," the templar sighed.

"And one more thing. From now, until I say otherwise, please, pretend to be my brother. I don't want my identity to be revealed until we find her."

"But... how should I call you? Everyone knows that _May_ is the name of our new Lady of Life," he objected.

"Right..." she stopped and took a deep breath. "You're right. I'm sorry, I can't concentrate... Call me... Alia."

"As you wish, uhm, sister."

"Or sister," she chuckled.

~ x ~

The assassin took all her possessions except her clothes, searched her thoroughly, bound her hands and let the guards to put her into a prison cell. There she waited until he notified his superiors and found someone to interrogate her. He returned after an hour or so and led her to a small room with walls and ceiling covered by glowing stones and only with two chairs and a plain table as a furniture. All that light was probably good for the Elyos, but it was too bright for her and made her dizzy. She sat on one chair, he on the other.

"So, little crow," he smiled in amusement. "Who are you?"

Chellia looked at him seriously and said: "An Asmodian spy. A very bad one."

"Yeah, you proved that outside," he laughed. "And besides that?"

"Uhm... human."

"Alright, you're trying to be funny," he frowned. "Then it's my duty to inform you, that my patience is limited. If you refuse to answer my questions, I'll send someone who will do more than just asking. Clear?"

"Maybe you misheard something," she folded her arms on her chest. "So I'll repeat the important part. I'm an Asmodian. And I won't tell you anything just because you threaten me. If you want to torture me, fine, go ahead. The worst thing you can do is killing me."

"You're so eager to die?"

"I'm a human. Sooner or later, I am _supposed_ to die."

"_I_ would definitely prefer _later_," he shrugged and got up. "But that's up to you, right? Oh, by the way, lord Kaisinel is visiting us today. And he rarely turns away from an opportunity to explore fresh mind."

"Fresh mind?" she got frightened. "What do you mean?"

"Will you speak if I tell you?"

"No."

"Then bye."

Without any other word he exited the room and locked the door. She was left alone surrounded only by incredibly bright light. Her eyes and head started to hurt from it. Her wrists were still bound and she couldn't concentrate on even simplest thought. The minutes spent in that room seemed like hours. Hours like days. She had no idea how much time passed when the door opened again and a man entered the room. Well, she knew he was a man, because they reffered him as 'Lord' and used 'he' when talking about him. But gender of that person couldn't be determined for sure. His robes were rich, fancy and glittering, his face had more make-up than whores she met in the Airship dock in Pandaemonium. And he held a staff with emblem of a butterfly. But no matter how silly his look was, his presence was terrifying. At first he was frowning. But as he stood there and watched her, his expression slowly changed into... rage.

"You!" he breathes out and moved his staff. A gust of wind lifted Chellia from the chair and slammed her into the wall behind her. She lost her sight for a moment. "How dare you come here?!" he yelled and sharp pain pierced through her skull. Or mind, she couldn't tell if it was real. "How dare you exist?!"

Images filled her mind. She could no longer see anything besides them. Closing her eyes didn't help, she had to look. And she had no idea what was it, she couldn't describe any single thing of those he showed her. It was madness.

"You're a spit into Aion's face!" she heard his voice.

When he finally released her and let her fall to the floor, she was able to say only two words: "Kill... me..."

"Better late than never!" he spat and the temperature in the room rose. "You should have never been born!"

"What do you think you're doing, Kaisinel?" she heard another voice. Deeper and less annoying. "Stop this at once."

She didn't even have the strength to look who came in. And before Kaisinel replied, everything around her fell into a blackness.


	3. Chapter 03

Triniel looked at her desk and frowned. The last several days were too stressfull that she had no chance to go through all her paperwork and reports. She was angry at herself, she shouldn't let her grief to take control of her. She gave orders without properly analyzing them and could endanger Asmodae. Now was the time to find out. She sat behind the table and begun reading. Despite the recklessness of her orders the officer spy did very good assignments. All those sent to Elysea were capable. Then she found the report about Inggison. As she expected, he had to go himself simply because of the lack of people. But when she found the name of the second spy sent to the Elyos territory in Balaurea, her hands started shaking and she dropped the paper. She clasped her hands and for the first time in many centuries she whispered a prayer to Aion.

~ x ~

"Halt!" a group of guards was standing in the middle of the road to Jeiaparan village. "Turn around, the village is in quarantine."

"I'm a healer and I'm here to help those people," May said with her gaze cast down. "Please, let us pass."

"That's very generous of you, miss, but we have our orders," the guard looked at her apologetically.

"Then take me to your commander, please."

"I can't, it's general Perento. If you had his permission, we would let you pass, but..." he shrugged.

"Shouldn't we return then?" Wolf asked.

"No, you know we can't," May rejected that idea. "It's too far, we might be already too late. Sir guard, the reason of this quarantine is that the illness won't spread outside the village, right?"

"Yes, but my orders..."

"So if we give you all our teleportation scrolls, you can let us pass. Of course, until the disease is dealt with, you won't let us return," May smiled at him.

"How good healer are you?" another guard asked.

"She's the best healer I know," Wolf said with pride.

"The best healer _I_ know is the Lady of Life," the guard had doubts about Wolf's words and thought it was just empty boasting.

"I don't know the full extent of lady May's powers, but my sister here is very close to lady Yustiel's best disciples. From what I've heard. I don't know them personally," the templar retorted.

"Hey, you two, stop delaying them," another guard entered the conversation. "Take their scrolls and let them go there, if they can help."

"But what if they can't?"

"Then nothing happens. They die as well as the people in the village."

"You have someone in that village, right?" May asked sadly.

"Wife and sons," the guard admitted. "Can you help them?"

"I can only promise I will do everything to save them. But it might not be enough."

"Fine, fine," the guard leader gave up. "Give us all the scrolls and you can go. But don't even try to return until it's over."

"Thank you," May took her bag and offered it for search through. Wolf sighed and did the same. After few minutes they were free to enter the area around Jeiaparan village. The aura of fear and death hovered above the village.

"I don't like this," Wolf muttered as they entered between the first houses. The people who were still alive watched them with mixed emotions in their eyes. Some with hope, but more with despair, envy of their health and anger.

"Neither do I, Wolf," May replied absently. "We must find someone who knows at least something about this. Preferably the local soul healer, but..."

She turned around and headed to a man who tried to get two very curious boys back to the house. He was healthier than the others and she immediately knew why.

"Sir, could you tell me..."

"No," he snapped, maybe too aggressivly. "I won't tell you anything."

"But... why?" she didn't understand. "I'm a healer, I came here to help."

"The Lady of Life has forbidden us to talk with strangers, until she deals with this disease," he said with his anger bottled up and disappeared in the house."

~ x ~

This was the first time he'd seen Kaisinel like this. The Lord of Illusions was know for his short temper with Asmodians, for his warlike attitude, for his outbursts of anger, but he didn't rampage like this even when Lumiel humiliated him in the Battle of Primum Fortress. Back then he swore vengeance, cursed all Asmodians associated with her and even broke some things, but today was different. He completely lost control over himself.

"Please, tell me you had a valid reason for... this!" Nezekan was still in shock. He wasn't concerned about the prisoner's health, it was Kaisinel's sanity what worried him.

"Valid reason?!" Kaisinel was still furious. "Of course I had valid reason! I'm only trying to set right what _you_ _fucked up_!"

"What do you mean?" the templar had no idea what he's talking about and was also surprised by the words the master of spirits and illusions has chosen. Even in his fighting and killing mood he was always decent and left words like this for Vaizel or Zikel.

"You... don't know?" as if the Lord of Illusions woke up, which calmed him down a bit. "Then take a good look at her," he said bitterly and gestured to the prisoner. "And I _hope_ you'll tell me I'm wrong."

"Fine," Nezekan sighed, set aside his shield and knelt next to the girl. She lay on the floor with her face down and her body twisted in agony. "Is she hurt?"

"Only in mind."

Nezekan gently turned her around and brushed her black hair from her face. She was pretty and young. Maybe too young for a scouting mission like this. Human spy in Inggison was unusual, but it hardly could be the reason for Kaisinel's rage. But what was it, he couldn't tell. He was tired. From the lack of sleep over the past several days, from the problems the change of the Lady of Life brought, from his concern about Trini... el... He looked at the girl's face again. Then he blinked. No, it wasn't...

"Is... is she..." he looked at Kaisnel and wished this was just another of his illusions.

"She has your eyes. And there's Lumiel's protective seal on her. Someone was really carefull when trying to hide who she is."

"No," he breathed out. "It... it can't be possible."

"She's still human and she can't be more than twenty years old. So _you_ tell me, if it's possible," Kaisinel was still angry.

"Twenty years, hm," Nezekan remembered well that the only moment he met Triniel outside of battlefield was in Sarpan when they found out Kahrun was still alive. Kahrun. His dream was what led Nezekan here, could he see his sister instead of mother? Or did Kaisinel plan to use the girl as a bait for Triniel? "She's seventeen or so. What do you plan to do with her?"

"Search her mind to find everything she knows and then execute her," the Lord of Illusions replied mercilessly. "And don't argue. Inggison is my domain, you can't order me here."

"But I can't allow you to kill her," Nezekan objected. "She's my daughter..." when he finally said those words, their sound was strange. But deep inside his head those words filled him with pride.

"Did you forget your promise?!" Kaisinel raised his voice. "After we discovered Asmodians, you said you will never endanger Elysea through your personal affairs! You said you will treat Triniel as an enemy! And now you have this... this... girl with her! You broke Aion's law! I'm only trying to set it right! Give me one good reason why should I let her live!"

"You don't have to yell, I can hear you," Nezekan frowned. "And yes, I know, _I_ broke Aion's law. Not this girl. She's innocent, she's done nothing wrong. You can't kill her just because she was born."

"No, I'm going to _execute_ her because she was spying here. That's what we do with Asmodians we catch."

"But she's half Elyos!" the templar was desparate.

"Fine. I'll wait until she wakes up," Kaisinel decided. "And if she defects and joins us under _my_ command, I'll spare her life."

~ x ~

"She's here?" May couldn't believe what the man said. But he was already inside and no didn't hear her.

"Can it be connected, m... uhm... sister?" Wolf asked and took a quick look around. "If they want to discredit you, such illness would be ideal tool."

"But... who would do such thing? Why would anyone risk it spreads just to... destroy _me_?"

"We can't know full motives of Asmodians or Lepharists. They would only profit from Elyos dying out."

"No, Asmodians wouldn't do that. Asmodae is too cold for infectious diseases to spread there. And where would they find someone to impersonate the Lady of Life? No, this is no work of Asmodians," May refused to think about that. "So that leaves the Lepharists. Fine, bring me water, Wolf, I'll start healing them. Let's see how this _Lady_ reacts at breaking her restrictions."

"As you wish, sister."

May didn't want to enter someone's house without being invited, so she found first ill person outside. It was a man in thirties or fourties, from his clothes she assumed he was a wanderer and came to the village before the village was closed. He had fever and trouble with breathing. She knelt next to him and sent her aether to examine his state. As the moments passed, she became more and more horrified. She begun with healing. The man's body twitched in pain. When Wolf returned with the bucket of water, she was holding a black bead in her hand and frowning at it. The man opened his eyes.

"You..." he was exhausted, but immediately he got on his knees and almost hit the ground with his head. "You saved me. I knew you would come, my lady. I knew it."

"Easy, don't kneel, you need to rest," May helped him to sit and gestured at Wolf to bring the water. But when he did, she stopped him. "Wait, put it here."

The templar put the bucket on the ground. The Lady of Life in hiding dove her hand into the water. After few moments she drew out of the bucket the same black bead, maybe bit smaller, as she was holding in her other hand.

"What is that, my lady?" the wanderer asked.

"You know who I am?"

"Of course," he said proudly. "I saw you when you were in Heiron. I'm not stupid, I remember! The other one is false. She wants to be paid before she starts healing!"

"Thank you," she smiled. "But please, don't tell anyone, okay? I need to know what she wants here and if she has allies before I deal with her. And I have to heal as much people I can before she notices me."

"Silent as a grave. What are those things?" he pointed at the beads.

"These..." May hesitated for a while. "This one I extracted from your body. This one from the water. What torments this village is not a disease, it's a poison."

~ x ~

Chellia woke up in a clean room with small windows under the ceiling which let in enough light for her to see but not so bright to be blinded by it. She was in a simple bed and next to her was a table with some fruits and bread. Behind the table was a wooden chair. That was the only furniture she could see, but it was far better than any prison cell she'd ever seen. She carefully looked around and pinched her cheek expecting being trapped in another of Kaisinel's illusions. Nothing happened. She didn't even expected anything. She sat calmly on her bed and closed her eyes waiting for whathever they planned for her. Not that she had much choice.

After like half an hour the door into her room opened and someone entered. She resisted the urge to open her eyes and only listened. The person sat on the chair.

"I know you're not sleeping," he said. It was the same person who stopped Kaisinel back then. She opened her eyes and saw a man with ginger hair and blue eyes. He wore simple but good clothes and a breastplate, which looked like just part of a set of armor, but there was no reason to wear full plate for interrogation of one human prisoner. She recognized him immediately and frowned.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked. She nodded. "Good. Then I hope you won't do anything stupid. If you cooperate, I'll do everything I can to return you to your mother."

"Is this some Elyos metaphor? Something like Atreia is mother to all of us and you will bury me?"

"Your real mother. The woman who gave birth to you," he clarified.

"No, thanks," she refused. "My mom's dead, I don't want to join her so soon."

"I know she's alive," he replied seriously. "If she weren't..."

"Hey, stop it! Do you honestly think that I will believe that the great-oh-mighty lord Nezekan wants to talk to me about my mother? Sorry to disappoint you, sir, but I'm an orphan. My parents died. End of story. Now tell me what the hell do you want or leave me alone."

"You're quite bold given the fact you're a prisoner."

She glared at him without saying a word.

"Tell me your name."

Still silent she watched him.

"You're not making this any easier," Nezekan sighed. "Do you know why Kaisinel lost control and tortured you so much?"

"I'm an Asmodian," Chellia replied coldly. "And he's a maniac."

"Not exactly," he smiled, but immediately he got serious. "The truth is, you resemble your mother too much. And Kaisinel hates her more than anything. One would say he hates Lumiel, but... well, he hates all the Shedim lords, but your mother is a special case."

"So that's why he screamed '_how dare you exist_' and '_you should have never been born_'?"

He sighed again.

"That was because by Aion's law it is forbidden for two Empyrean lords to have a child."

She stared at him in shock with her mouth half open.

"W-wha-at?" she blinked and pinched her cheek again. "No, you're lying. Wait... Actually you didn't say anything. You're just telling me some thing completely unrelated to each other and waiting for what I will deduce from it. No, I'm not buying that. Keep talking, if you want. I'm not listening to you anymore."

"If you insist, I will say it directly," he took a deep breath. "You are Triniel's daughter," he paused to be sure he got her attention. "And mine."

"You're lying," she whined silently and hugged her knees.

"I'm telling you the truth. And even if I don't like saying it, that's the only reason why you're still alive."

She looked at him with question in her eyes.

"You are an Asmodian. And to be captured here... well, we would interrogate you and kill you. But I can't allow anyone to hurt you now, I have to protect you. Just don't try to take advantage of it, I have means to restrain you without hurting you."

Chellia forced herself to calm down and think. What he said, did make sense in some ways. All her life she knew she was of mixed blood, her eyes were too blue to be of Asmodians. And it would explain that Kaisinel's rage. He tortured her, mut mostly with illusions. He caused her lot of pain, but never serious injury. But there was still something that didn't match.

"You seem to believe what you are saying," she started carefully. "But you must be mistaken. If I were a child of... if I were what you're saying I am, I wouldn't have been this useless, don't you think? Even you can see I'm a mere human with no ability to control the aether. You are masters of it. So tell me, how it is possible?"

"That might be because of the seal."

"What seal?"

"Kaisinel found a Lumiel's seal on you. It looks like when you were born she sealed you off the aether, so you could be raised like every other human child," he paused. "Kaisinel thinks that if this seal is removed, you can ascend."

"Can he remove it?"

"No," Nezekan shook his head. "It requires a highly skilled sorcerer, preferably Lumiel herself, but definitely someone in her training. After you get back home, talk to your mother. She can make that happen. Now, will you tell me your name?"

"Chellia."

"That's a nice name."

"Please, if you don't need anything, leave me alone. I can't just pretend you're all flowers and rainbows now. You are still an enemy."

"There is one more thing, Chellia," he didn't want to tell that to her, he already knew her answer. "You've been captured in Inggison, that's Kaisinel's domain, not mine. And he plans to execute you. I'm trying to convince him to let you go, I know you didn't see anything of the base, so you're no threat to us. But he hates you too much. He made it clear that unless you defect and join the Elyos under his command, you will die."

"I won't betray."

"I thought so."

"That means... what you said earlier, about me returning safely to my mother... it was a lie?"

"No," Nezekan clenched his fists. "I will do _everything_ I can to return you home safely. I will even kidnap you if I have to, I won't hesitate to exchange my life for yours, but it might not be enough."

"Why..." she couldn't find the right words. "Why would you do such things for some Asmodian?"

"Not for some Asmodian. For you. You are my daughter. My flesh and blood. You are the future of Atreia. I wasn't convinced until now, but Kahrun's right. The peace between Elyos and Asmodians is necessary, if we want to survive. And you can help to make the peace happen. That's why you must live."

"That's insane," Chellia shook her head. "You are a Seraphim lord. If you die, the balance between Elyos and Asmodian forces will shatter and the peace will be impossible. It was me who was too stupid to let herself captured, so let him execute me. I'm aquiesced with it."

"But I'm not!" Nezekan refused. "You're my child. The fact I didn't know about you doesn't mean I'll pretend you don't exist. Because you do. So please, stay here and don't try to escape. I will negotiate your freedom with Kaisinel. Even if I had to give him my position as leader of Elysean defence."

He didn't wait for her reply and in very disgruntled mood left her cell.


End file.
